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Bruce Lee exhibition opens on the 40th anniversary of his death

The daughter of martial arts legend Bruce Lee has opened a new exhibition about his life in Hong Kong on the 40th anniversary of his death.

The new exhibition, entitled Bruce Lee: Kung Fu. Art. Life, was made possible after the Hong Kong government and the Bruce Lee Foundation teamed up to collect more than 600 artefacts from the superstar actor's life.

Lee, who was born in San Francisco but raised in Hong Kong, died at the height of his fame due to an allergic reaction to painkillers at the age of 32. His last film, Enter The Dragon, was released six days after his death and became his most popular movie.

The exhibition features a wide variety of memorabilia including private family photos and the famous yellow tracksuit worn by the actor in the film Game of Death.

The tracksuit worn by Bruce Lee in Game of Death. Credit: APTN

His daughter Shannon Lee, who was only four when her father died, said she hoped the writings on display would allow fans to reflect on Lee's great body of work, and not just his martial arts skills.

Hopefully this exhibition will help show a more complete picture. By showing the hard work he put into making his movies and other aspects of his life such as the poetry he wrote.

I think a lot of people see the final product up on screen and they go, 'oh, there's a talented guy,' but they don't see all the effort that went into it.

– Shannon Lee

A family portrait of Bruce Lee. Credit: APTN

She added: "People immediately assume that I am some amazingly skilled and deadly martial artist." But despite studying martial arts, Shannon said it was not the main focus of her life.

"I am a 44-year-old businesswomen with a 10-year old child," she said.

Shannon said she was keen to keep her father's legacy going, saying: "He touched so many lives in such a positive way, and if I can keep that going, that's meaningful."